Thread-guide.



w. c. POTTER.

THREAD GUIDE.

APPLICATION'FILED Nov. I6. 1917.

1,326,871. Patented Dec. 30,1919.

3 wmzwtoz 1451B (/1? C POTTER, 3&4; hi who 014m WILBUR O. POTTER, OF NEWBRUNSWICK, NEW JERSEY.

THREAD-GUIDE.

Application filed November 16, 1917.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, lVILBUR C. Po'rrnn, a citizen of the United States,residing in New Brunswick, in the county of Middlesex and State of NewJersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Thread-Guides, of which the following is a specification.

I have invented an improvement in thread guides, particularly threadguides to be used upon the so-called stop-motion mechanisms of knittingand other textile producing machines.

The primary object of my invention is to provide a thread guide which isof such shape that it will always direct the thread into engagement withthe trip lever of the stop motion mechanism; and which can be used withor without a guard for the thread on its Way to the trip lever, as theoperator desires.

Otherobjects and advantages will appear from the following descriptiontaken in connection with the accompanying drawings; and the novelfeatures of my invention will be precisely defined in the appendedclaims. This disclosure, however, is explanatory only, and I may employembodiments other than what is actually shown herein to the full extentindicated by the general meanings of the terms in which the claims areexpressed.

On the drawings:

Figure 1 is a side view showing my improved thread guide mounted inposition on its support, which is the arm of a stop motion mechanism;

Fig. 2 is an end view of such an arm with the guide thereon;

Fig. 3 is a view of a blank from which my improved guide is made; and

Fig. 4 is a detail view showing the relative positions of the end of thetrip lever and that portion of the guide adjacent the same when thethread is passing the trip lever.

. The same numerals of reference identify the same parts throughout.

In the particular description of the structure shown in the drawings,the numeral 1 indicates an arm which is mounted on and projects from acasing inclosing the parts of a stop-motion mechanism; but as both thecasing and the mechanism it contains are well known and not a part of myinvention, it is not necessary to show them on the drawings or describethem herein. The

Specification of Letters Patent.

Serial No. 202,276.

guide made in accordance with my invention is indicated at 2, and ismounted at the outer end of this arm by securing it above and below to ahead 8. On the arm 1 and below the same near the head 3 is pivoted thetrip lever a, which has the form of a bellcrank, and projects at oneextremity into proximity to the portion of the guide which is farthestfrom the arm 1'. I also may employ a guard 5 for the thread incombination with the guide 2; this guard when present being secured tothe lower end of the head 3 projecting away from the arm in the samedirection as the guide so as to cooperate with the same and with thelever a;

Preferably the guide 2 is made by stamping a blank out of a sheet ofmetal or some other substance, giving it the form shown in Fig. 3. Theblank may accordingly be yokeshaped; comprising a pair of arms 6,terminating in laterally extending ears 7 which are adapted to be bentover toward the same face of the blank and perforated to enable them tobe secured to the top and bottom of the head 3 by means of screws. Theshank of the yoke is not straight, but is turned to one side of the longaxis of the blank, as shown in Fig. 3; so that when the blank is finallyshaped to make the guide, and when the guide is mounted upon the head 3,the guide will terminate at its outer end in a tail 8; and the edge ofthe blank from the extremity of this tail to the ear 7, which is to bemade fast to the top of the head 8, will be curved so that when theguide is mounted on the arm 1, a thread. placed upon the upper part ofthis. curved edge, which is indicated at 9 in the drawings, near thehead 3, will slide down along this edge until it is stopped by the outerend of the lever 4. I of course polish this curved edge 9, so as toround the cornersof the sameand remove all burs and jagged projections;and make the same as smooth as is possible. When finished the guide 2will be concave on the face to bepresented to the lever a, and convex onits opposite face.

The lever t is mounted upon a suitable pivot post 10 which projectsdownward from the lower face of the arm 1, and terminates in its forwardend adjacent the tail 8 in a portion for engaging a thread; such as afork having prongs or points 11, and at its opposite end it carries abook 12. The prongs 11 do not come into contact with the guide 2; andwhen this lever is moved so Patented Dec. so, 1919.

v thread is placed on the guide near the head 3 it will be arrested bythe lever t as soon as it slides down along the edge 9 sutliciently farto engage the forward prong 11. The thread will then be held by thelever and run between the points 11 of the fork as it passes toward thestop-motion on its way to the knitting needles. This thread is indicatedby the broken lines in Fig. 1, at 13.

In practice the lever at is so relatedto the stop-motion mechanism thatit is yieldably .held in the position indicated in Figs. 1

and 2. So long as the thread runs smoothly over the fork and past theother parts of the stop-motion mechanism, not shown, which are to becontrolled by the thread, the operation of the knitting machine willcontinue.- If, however, the thread or yarn should become tangled bygetting bunched or knotted, the knot will actuate the parts of thestopmotion mechanism controlled by the thread asthe knot or bunch passessame, allowing the stop-motion mechanism to come into play and stop theknitting machine before any damage to the thread can occur. When thisinterruption occurs, the element, not shown, which engages the hook 12of the lever 4. releases this lever; allowing it to swing away from theguide 2; and the thread to drop out from between the prongs 11. Theattendant then gives the knitting machine proper attention, removing orsmoothingv out the knot or bunch in the yarn and making ready forfurther operation. After the knot or hunch is removed the parts of thestop-motion mechanism are returned to their former positions and thelever a allowed to swing back until the points 11 are again in proximityto the lower part of the guide 2. The thread is then-laid upon the upperpart of the guide so that it can slip down along the curved edge 9 intothe fork, and the knitting machinecan thus be started over.

The guard 5, which may be included, con sists of a piece'of metal whichis turned down at its front end and twisted slightly as indicated inFigs. 1 and 2, so that the edge indicated at the right-in Fig. 1 canengage the thread-as it passes to the lever a. The friction of thethread running in con tact with this edge, which is of course madesmooth by polishing, is sufficient to straighten out any loops ortangles and thus prevent the thread from becoming knotted to such anextent that it would work the stopano tion mechanism and stop theknitting machine. This guard may be included or not, according to thenature of the work to be performed, and the preference of the operator.

My invention, of course, is not confined to a guide having the exactshape shown in Figs. 1 and 3. For example, instead of the two arms 6,this guide may be made of a continuous sheet of metal without any recesscut into it separating the arms 6. Neither isit necessary for me toutilize a lever having the exact shape of the lever i,

as under many circumstances a trip lever which is not provided with afork at its outer end may be utilized instead. My invention relateprincipally to the guide and the manner of mounting the same so that thethread can be directed easily into the space between the points 11 ofthe lever l. And I wish to call attention to the fact that the guide andthe lever are so mounted with respect to each other that the spacebetween the prongs and the lever 4 is never obstructed by the guide, butremains open at all times because the guide is so curved that it extendsnot only outward from the one end of the arm 1, and from above to belowthe latter, but also toward the opposite end of the arm 1; the tail 8being bent under the fork so. that the thread can slip very easilybetween the prongs 11 and easily out of the prongs after the lever 4:swings to the right far enough to clear the tail 8 when the stop-motionmechanism causes the knitting machine to cease running.

The body of the guide 2 having-the arms (Sat one'end, is provided with atail 8 at the other end to extend the body; and makethe edge 9 longenough to reach from the head 3 beyond the fork 4.

A projection or web 14 on the bottom of the arm 1 prevents the lever tmoving farther to the left than the position it occupies in Fig. 1, byengaging the elbowor angle of the lever 4c.

The body of the guard or guide above described is adapted for use inconnection with stop mechanism for knitting machines of the kinddisclosed in the patent to F. Crawford, 510839, granted December 12,1893.

Having described my invention, what I claim to be new and desire tosecure and protect by Letters Patent of the United States is asfollows 1. The combination of a support having a lever terminating in afork pivoted there on and a guide secured to the support and extendingtoward the fork carried by said lever, the guide adjacent said forkbeing substantially parallel to the plane of the prongs thereon, oneprong of the fork projecting beyond the guide.

2. The combination of a support, a guide composed of a body having apair of arms adjacent one end to enable the gulde to be fixed to thesupport, and having a tail at the opposite end of the body to extend theguide, said. arms and said tail being bent to make the guide concave onone face and convex on the other, and a lever pivoted on the bodyadjacent the concave face of the guide.

8. In a device of the kind described the combination of a support havinga lever pivoted thereon, said lever terminating in a fork, and a guidemounted on the support adjacent the fork, said guide having a portionwhich is approximately parallel to the plane of the prongs of the forkand extends in proximity to said prongs and transversely thereof,without obstructing the space between said prongs, one prong of I thelever projecting beyond the guide.

4:. The combination of a support, a lever pivoted to said support, saidlever terminating in a fork, a guide mounted on the end of the supportadjacent the lever, said guide having an edge which is curved to extenddownward from above the support to a point below the same and toward theopposite end of the support, one prong of the lever projecting beyondsaidedge, and a guard fixed to the support below the guide, said guardhaving a downward turned end.

5. The combination of a support, a guide comprising a body having oneend shaped to enable it to be fixed to the support and having a tail atthe opposite end of the body to extend the ame, said guide being concaveon one face and convex on the other, and a lever pivoted on the supportadjacent the concave face of the guide.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification this9th day of November, 1917.

WILBUR C. POTTER.

